Telecommunications operator iBurst Business and partner Goldtel are investing as much as R5m in bringing broadband and other services over fibre to a gated community north of Johannesburg.

It’s the first gate community project that iBurst has launched. It is offering a triple-play bundle of voice, data and video services (including DStv) over fibre at the estate, Monaghan Farm, 2km north of Lanseria Airport.

iBurst is providing Internet connectivity using a 4Mbit/s microwave backhaul link that will be upgraded as demand grows.

Monaghan Farm is still under construction, with four houses on the estate occupied at present at a cost of R1m. iBurst says the plan is to offer a full suite of fibre-based services to 279 houses on the estate at a cost of between R4m and R5m.

iBurst commercial head Steve Briggs says SA’s changed regulatory environment has enabled the company to offer the service to gated communities. Previously, only Telkom was permitted legally to offer full telecoms services to estates like Monaghan Farm.

Each house on the estate has access to a 1Gbit/s fibre connection. Phone calls to other houses on the estate are free of charge.

A server room at the estate houses voice and data servers, a router, a switch which connects to iBurst’s microwave backhaul network, and a DStv dish which routes pay-TV signals over the fibre network.

Though not implemented at Monaghan Farm yet, the fibre network can also be used to provide services like video on demand from a community multimedia server, in-estate videogaming and security products. — Duncan McLeod, TechCentral